CES 2019 will bring the traditional deluge of consumer electronics devices, but the business implications will be critical as everything becomes connected and the data generated by the hardware becomes the real asset.
While CES traditionally revolves around consumer devices, most of them also will have business use cases. Here's a look at three emergent trends at CES 2019 that have business technology implications.
If you thought the 5G hype cycle in 2018 was bad just wait to see how 2019 unfolds. As CES 2019 kicks off it's worth noting that both Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg and AT&T Communications CEO John Donovan are headliners, and both will talk up the so-called 5G revolution.
AT&T and Verizon have both rolled out pilots for 5G and are adding markets now, while T-Mobile has also talked up speedier connections -- as has its merger partner Sprint. One common thread is that these carriers are talking about 5G's enterprise applications as much as the consumer benefit.
Also: CNET CES 2019 | 14 questions CES 2019 needs to answer
On the device front, Samsung and the army of Android device makers will embrace 5G relatively quickly, but keep in mind three things:
It's worth keeping the 5G CES talk in perspective given that Mobile World Congress in February will feature much of the same banter and disconnect with reality.
Let's get real. CES 2019 is less about the hardware and more about the software. That 'software-takes-over-the-world' theme means CES, which traditionally revolves around hardware, has a few complicated pivots to manage.
And given that no software will exist without artificial intelligence, rest assured that the barrage of product news will have a bunch of newfangled AI uses.
Like what? Think toothbrushes. Think better robotics and home helpers. Think autonomous everything. Think dozens of AI-enabled wearables and sensors to track health issues.
The last two CES events featured a heavy dose of Amazon's Alexa platform. Alexa Everywhere became a mantra in 2017 and only gained momentum in 2018. CES 2019 may bring more high-minded AI talk.
For instance, IBM's Ginni Rometty is likely to talk about the role of trust in artificial intelligence. Other CEOs are likely to follow that trust theme. After all, AI embedded everywhere without checks and balances is a recipe for disaster.
Primers:
CES 2019 typically brings a few quirky designs as well as partnerships that move design forward. What's unclear is whether CES will feature ground-breaking innovations like foldable phones, or simply more thoughtful product additions that make life easier.
Here are a few design moving parts to consider.
Also: Google Chrome's new UI is ugly, and people are very angry
Like previous years, the conversation about products and the tech market revolve around a company that isn't even participating. It's safe to say that CES 2019 will feature a lot of chatter about Apple.
Apple said its first quarter revenue will be lower than expected due to a slowdown in China as well as slow iPhone upgrades in other markets.
Has the iPhone peaked? And what's next if the iPhone has peaked? If you zoom out more nearly every smartphone related announcement will be haunted by those Apple questions. Given that most smartphone announcements will be held until Mobile World Congress, the Apple question will remain front and center for the mobile industry.
The Monday Morning Opener is our opening salvo for the week in tech. Since we run a global site, this editorial publishes on Monday at 8:00am AEST in Sydney, Australia, which is 6:00pm Eastern Time on Sunday in the US. It is written by a member of ZDNet's global editorial board, which is comprised of our lead editors across Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America.